Low Code and No Code Platforms - some practical thoughts

Introduction

Low-code is a software development approach that helps tech and business professionals collaborate and deliver digital transformative solutions faster by minimizing the amount of coding. More specifically,?low-code?largely replaces the need to create custom code with a collection of ready-to-go UI components, boilerplate scripts and integrations, solution blueprints, visual workflow automation tools, and other user-friendly features. For enterprise-grade application development,?low-code?platforms combine these features with other advanced tools for application lifecycle management,?low-code?governance, security, and AI/ML decisioning and offer the ultimate workspace for digital innovations.

What is Low Code Platform ?

A low-code development platform refers to an app development platform that allows you to create business and?mobile apps with little to no coding skills,They use a graphical UI with minimal logic and drag-and-drop capabilities instead of writing extensive lines of code.

What is No-code platform ?

No-code development platforms allow you to create apps without writing a single line of code. This implies that anyone with no coding skills can build applications without any hassle. No-code platforms are related to low-code platforms closely as both of them aim to expedite app development. A no-code platform uses graphical user interfaces in addition to configurations rather than traditional programming languages.

Both low-code and no-code platforms are becoming popular as they offer an easy and fast alternative to traditional development processes.

What are some examples ?

I cite a few vendors in no particular order with respect to my preference or their industry penetration. This is just a random list off the top of my head. There are more vendors, obviously, that are not listed here, and that number has been growing steadily.

1.????Zoho Creator

2.????Visual LANSA

3.????Knack

4.????Bubble

5.????m-Power

6.????Mendix

7.????Quickbase

8.????Retool

9.????Airtable

10.?Microsoft Power Apps

11.?Caspio

12.?OutSystems

Benefits of Low-Code or No-code Development Platforms

• Higher productivity: No-code platforms allow you to build more applications in less time. As you don’t have to write long lines of code and have many capabilities to automate processes, you can build apps within days or maybe hours.
• Reduced cost: Launch more and faster! You can also cut down costs that you used to spend on hiring more developers and using multiple other tools for development.
• Business agility: These platforms allow you to create smooth apps that can work across multiple platforms and devices. Users can access data and use it efficiently no matter where they are and what time it is.
• Effective governance: Regulations change frequently, and it becomes difficult for organizations to keep up with them. Low-code platforms can help you meet these regulations and comply with them to remain risk-proof.

Drawbacks/Limitations of Low-Code and No-code Development Platforms as compared to traditional software development

Templates run the show - The biggest limitation of no-code platforms is the templates they provide to build products/services for their users. Normally, users get a drag-and-drop functionality to mix and match elements to build the required feature.

By default, the templates have a range of features to use, and any feature that isn’t in one template can be borrowed from another. The problem begins when there is a particular function that you need but is not available on the no-code platform.

While you can build features by getting source code permission from the no-code provider, working on an already structured codebase is difficult. Furthermore, it will require you to know advanced coding, which takes away the need to use no code in the first place.

Not an easy learning curve - No code platforms are best suited for applications that aren’t extremely complex in nature. While they are extremely well suited for?MVP?to small-scale applications, building a full-fledged application from scratch requires a significant learning curve.

As you are also limited by what’s allowed within the platform, you may have to compromise on some features to ensure your application doesn’t become too complicated to build.

For business owners and early-stage startups who are looking to build feature-rich software in the near future, it’s best to either go for a low-code option or build customized software altogether.

One other drawback of no-code platforms is the seemingly boxed UI they provide with blocks of features and functions that users can add during app development. This limits the design possibilities for the app and may render a commonplace design that not many users may like to use.

Limited security - While no-code applications are generally safe, you have little to no control over the code within your applications. This means, that security issues will arise. And relying on third-party services with data security can prove to be a costly mistake if you’re thinking of scaling in the near future.

No-code platforms are ideal for businesses that are limited in their complexity of operations. Simple applications that require just a set number of features come under this category and are served best using pre-written code.

Creativity takes a toll - No-code applications usually come with limited UI and design choices that render them to be basic apps which may not garner enough customer attention. While this can be adequate for in-house processes, presenting an interface for users to engage with requires serious design thinking, which is often a limitation for no-code applications.

No-code platforms generally provide options to add features through custom code, but that’s generally provided by low-code platforms too. This in itself makes companies rethink the viability of no-code solutions and move to either low-code or custom solutions altogether.

Vendors decide on app progress - Your primary bottleneck will always be the app or tool you use most of the time. No code application vendors could become your biggest bottleneck if they are slow to integrate the latest features into their platform.

Such a scenario where you are limited by the features and functionality provided by your vendor is called vendor lock, which is a troubling phase for any tech startup. No-code platforms can be invaluable assets while?building MVP?and during the initial phase of the business. But it’s always better to move on to customized software solutions once you are?ready to scale your platform.

Furthermore, working with a no-code vendor usually grants you reduced access and zero ownership of the source code. This lack of control makes it difficult to quickly add custom features by in-house developers.

Not the cheapest solution - Empirically speaking, no-code solutions are much more economical than?hiring engineers?to build custom software. But when we consider the product quality, things seem a bit out of place.

There is also the problem of learning curves that are associated with every no-code platform. While they all look like pick and drop features, their process flow can differ significantly, and usability is also quite different from one app to another.

Not the most scalable option - Subscription models are not exactly the best option if you are considering?scaling up in the future. While no-code platforms help you get off the board with only the essential features and tools, they can get inadequate when the user count exceeds a threshold.

The real limitation comes in when user demands exceed the level of service you could provide. This is one of the prime reasons why businesses move on to either a low-code or a custom solution after they get enough users to scale.

One benefit while using no-code solutions here is the development of citizen coders who can build simple systems for their day-to-day operations. Everything else requires substantial coding, which is often reached when the requirement is too much to handle by in-house teams

Limited support and maintenance - Once you choose to go with a no-code vendor, support is limited to whatever the subscription model provides. There is also a lack of priority support in such platforms, so any bugs or shutdowns will be entirely dependent on the vendor.

Unfriendly Migration and integration - No-code applications often come with pre-built components that users are okay with until they plan to migrate. Pre-built components are often incompatible with other platforms and may render your app migration a nightmare.

Pre-built applications always have lots of interconnected code. Thus, migrating from one platform to another might not work as smoothly as you may think. Bugs can show up seemingly without reason, and decoding bugs could become bigger hassles than going for custom software development in the first place.

It goes without saying that third-party integrations within any no-code platform fall under the discretion of the vendor. You can request these integrations, but it will take considerable user requests for the vendor to work on developing such integrations.

Time to market limitations - Business solutions are always timebound and choosing platforms falls under a well-curated timeline. Comparing development speeds will always show no-code solutions as the quickest option available. But this always involves a sacrifice of product quality or customization.

With the time spent on new software adoption and building sustainable systems with no code platforms, development teams can?build simplified MVPs?that can then be scaled indefinitely.

Conclusion

Even with these drawbacks and limitations of no-code and low-code platforms, there is no doubt about their practicality. They can come in handy at key moments in your business cycle (for example, rapid prototyping and proving the idea and taking your idea off power point).

Bottomline - ensure your business use cases, your goal and purpose, and then employ the tooling strategy including integrating low-code and no-code platforms. For example, in addition to rapid prototyping, there may be hybrid situations that may fit your product development needs, where you could use these platforms very effectively within the overall confine of your tech stack, so my practical advice is - don't neglect and abandon these platforms and services entirely just because you love to code and love to build everything from ground up. Your business objective, speed to market, skillsets, hiring engineers, and many more other factors need to be considered in the mix before saying NO, so be methodical and intentional.